At the same time, employers are begging for employees. It’s common now to go to a favourite store or cafe to find it closed or on short hours, or hear a plumber or sparky say "not today, short-staffed".
Wages are going up, and yet some mums are still staying home.
At the same time, Otago has also seen a drop in overall enrolments in early childhood education and care.
Is there a link?
I think so. For a lot of families with preschoolers, it is cheaper for mum to not work, than to run a second car, pay fees, pay for work clothes and shoes, and manage the hassle of wrangling wriggling toddlers into a centre.
Despite millions of extra dollars coming from government into ECE, it is still not enough to cover the increases in costs.
For centres, inflation is part of it — as with households around the country, our food and power bills have increased.
Meanwhile, the Government doesn’t cover the rise in costs that government policies demand.
It’s the same with pay parity – for the mission the increase in salaries was $100,000 more than the growth in subsidies, so fees have to stay stubbornly high.
And yet, early childhood education can make a profound difference in the life for our children. Good socialisation, learning how to control thoughts and feelings and actions, language acquisition, preparation for school; these are major headstarts for a good life.
But for families that are dealing with higher mortgages and rents, higher prices for food and power and petrol, affording that advantage can feel out of reach.
We need to do better!
